Rickey Patat, of Great Kills, spotted the whale last week as he sailed his boat in Raritan Bay and caught it on video.

“I find them almost every time I go out on my boat,” he said. “I always alert the Coast Guard and report the status and condition of the whale to the best of my ability.”

The Advance quoted Mendy Garron of NOAA’s Mammal Response Program in Gloucester, Mass as saying that whales have been spotted in both the Raritan and Sandy Hook Bays.

“Currently there are a large number of whales in coastal waters of New York and New Jersey,” Garron said in an email. “We do occasionally receive reports of whale sightings in Sandy Hook Bay and Raritan Bay.”

Humpback whales are an endangered species protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act.

Garran advised against approaching whales and to report sighting to the Marine Mammal Standing Center at 609-266-0538.